The secret Irishman likely behind bitcoin, the internet currency code

The mysterious figure who created a new currency called bitcoin on the net that has intrigued millions around the globe is very likely a 23-year old Irish student named Michael Clear, ‘The New Yorker’ magazine has revealed.

Speaking to IrishCentral the young man vehemently denied that he is the bitcoin's creator. An online currency could easily threaten major currencies and is a major crime in the US where it is a violation of federal law.

In the New Yorker's lead story, writer Joshua Davis describes an exhaustive search to find the creator of the world’s first cryptocoded on-line currency which already has $35 million dollars in bitcoins in circulation. It is growing by leaps and bounds.

The given name of the founder of bitcoin claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto, a 36-year-old Japanese man who invented bitcoins on January 3rd 2009.

But Davis discovered that it was highly unlikely that such a person ever existed. there are only about 300 professional cryptocoders in the world and no one had ever heard of Nakamoto.

Instead Davis attended a meeting of the top encoders in the world, held in Santa Barbra, California this summer.

He knew judging by the use of British English and the time of day that ‘Nakamoto ‘ was usually heard from that the programmers was probably British - or Irish.

After dismissing all of the British encoders he landed on Micheal Clear, a young graduate student of cryptography at Trinity College in Dublin.

Clear was the only student who studied theoretical crypytography as there were no others cryptographers at Trinity.

He was also versed in the computer language C++ of bitcoin.

Davis describes him as “A long-haired, square-jawed young man, who wore Armani glasses.”

Clear did not deny he was Nakamoto. “He laughed but didn’t respond, ” Davis reports.

In 2008 Clear was named the top undergraduate in computer science in Trinity.

He later worked for Allied Irish Bank as an encoder giving him the two most vital skills, an economic background and cryptography needed to create bitcoins.

Clear eventually sent an email identifying a Finnish researcher as Nakamoto but Davis, after meeting him quickly ruled him out.

Davis then got one of the major code breakers in America to try and crack the bitcoin code but he gave up in frustration calling it an incredibly well constructed code.

Clear concluded another interview by telling David “I’m not Satoshi, but even if I was I wouldn’t tell you.”

Speaking to IrishCentral Clear said "My sense of humor when I said 'even if I was I wouldn't tell you' is missing, this was said jokingly."

He continued "I found it funny that the New Yorker reporter thought I was Satoshi, but I have always (beyond conversational jokes like the quote above) vehemently denied it. I could never allow myself to be even remotely given credit for someone else's creativity and hard work."